fevers

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of fever.

   Tropical fevers spread through the camp during the rainy season.

   Recurring fevers can signal an underlying infection that needs testing.

   Note

   The plural appears only when fevers can be counted. It covers separate bouts of raised temperature, or different diseases named for the symptom, as in tropical fevers. The same plural also counts groups of stingrays, after a recent collective use (two fevers of stingrays). The form is spelled exactly like the present-tense verb, so the words around it show which one you are reading.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of fever. Rare as a verb.

   Note

   The verb works in two directions. Used intransitively, a patient fevers, meaning becomes fevered. Used transitively, something fevers a person, putting them into a fever. Because the -s ending matches the noun plural, look for a subject: "the child fevers" is the verb, while "recurring fevers" or "the fevers" is the noun.

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